Assignment: Significant Cultural Developments

Assignment: Significant Cultural Developments
Identify a list of twenty significant cultural developments from the past. Write 8–10 pages in which you evaluate the developments’ significance in history and to your everyday life.
This assessment allows you to demonstrate your ability to think critically about the past and to understand its significance to modern life.
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and assessment criteria:
· Competency 1: Describe the historical development of the humanities from the pre-historic era to the present.
. Identify significant cultural developments from a variety of historical eras.
. Assess the influence of past expressions of the humanities on present-day life.
· Competency 2: Examine the forms of expression that instantiate the arts and humanities.
. Describe the forms of expression that instantiate the arts and humanities.
· Competency 3: Integrate the humanities with everyday life.
. Explain how the arts and humanities affect everyday life.
. Assess the role of philosophical, religious, and aesthetic values in everyday life.
· Competency 4: Communicate effectively in forms appropriate to the humanities.
. Write coherently to support a central idea in appropriate format with correct grammar, usage, and mechanics.
Context
Applying the Humanities in Daily Life
Study of the humanities properly includes crucial features of contemporary life: social and political movements, scientific and technological achievements, literary and artistic developments, and ecological and terrorist challenges. Indeed, we can see all of these by looking at today’s newspaper. But let us also think about how to project ourselves forward, into the future. How shall our own expression of the humanities proceed? What feelings, perceptions, thoughts, and decisions should guide the decades to come?
Following this historical review of the contributions made by those of previous centuries, we would do well to keep in mind two inclinations that often have contrary effects on human judgment. On the one hand, we like to believe that our achievements over time constitute progress, that our understanding of the world and of ourselves is always moving forward, and that the future can only be even brighter than the present. On the other hand, we commonly suppose that the future holds unique threats, that things are not as good now as they were during some past golden age, and that they are bound to become even worse in the days to come. Hope for the future and nostalgia for the past are likely to appear at both the cultural and the personal levels.
Perhaps, most of us will find the deepest meaning for our lives when we follow both paths. We can select past contributions that most inspire us to create a better future for ourselves and the generations that follow. May the integration of the humanities into our daily lives honor what has been, celebrate what is now, and help us choose what is to come.
Questions to consider
To deepen your understanding, you are encouraged to consider the questions below and discuss them with a fellow learner, a work associate, an interested friend, or a member of the business community.
As we face the challenges of a global culture that relies on nearly instantaneous transmission of digital information, consider characteristics should we expect from leaders in the future.
· What have you learned by studying the contributions made by exceptional individuals of the past during our study of the humanities. Also, think about your own personal and professional experiences.
· What crucial skills will be most essential for the leaders of tomorrow? What are you doing to develop those skills today?
Assessment instructions
For this assessment, complete the following:
· Compile a list of twenty significant cultural developments from the past. You may use the Personal Significance activities (linked in the Resources under the Capella Multimedia heading) to help assemble this list:
. Describe the cultural developments you noted and then evaluate their application to modern life.
. Notice any compelling themes here. Are there any common themes or persistent forms of expression, or especially vital historical periods among your choices? Think about what the items you selected say about who you are and what gives your life meaning.
· Consider how these developments impact your everyday life in a personal way. The cultural background of humanities disciplines provide some structure, of course, but what really matters are your own feelings, perceptions, thoughts, and decisions.
. How does an understanding of the humanities impact your life?
. How do you integrate the philosophical, religious, and aesthetic values of the humanities into daily living?
This essay will be an intensely personal one; make it a worthwhile exercise.
Additional Requirements
· Written communication: Should be free of errors that detract from the overall message.
· APA formatting: Your paper should be formatted according to APA (6th edition) style and formatting.
· Length: 8–10 typed and double-spaced pages.
· Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12 point.
The twenty significant cultural developments from the past are provided in pictures that will be attached separately in groups of five:
About this Assignment
Effective intercultural communication requires an understanding of the various aspects of culture and how people respond to different cultures in a variety of settings. Beyond understanding concepts such as bias and stereotyping, effective communication includes the ability to understand the nuances of both verbal and non-verbal communication, how these are reflections of culture, and how strategies can be developed for more effective intercultural communication. For your final assignment, in a paper of approximately 2,500-3,000 words, address the prompts below using concepts you learned from the course to support your analysis.
Lesson
Course
Project Prompt
Select a culture other than your own. Compare and contrast your selected culture with your own on these dimensions in terms of how they influence communication:
Core values
Religious belief systems
Gender roles
Verbal and non-verbal communication
Communication context
Then, analyze how characteristics of both cultures influence communication in the following settings and identify the issues and opportunities that exist for each:
Education
Healthcare
Business settings
Finally, formulate strategies for improving intercultural communication in these settings including the development of cultural intelligence (CQ)
Using Sources
Please write your paper in APA format. You may refer to the course material for supporting evidence but you must also use at least three credible, outside sources and cite them using APA format as well. Please include a mix of both primary and secondary sources, with at least one source from a scholarly peer-reviewed journal. If you use any Study.com lessons as sources, please also cite them in APA (including the lesson title and instructor’s name.)
Primary sources are first-hand accounts such as interviews, advertisements, speeches, company documents, statements, and press releases published by the company in question.
Secondary sources come from peer-reviewed scholarly journals, such as the Journal of Management. You may use JSTOR, Google Scholar, and Social Science Research Network to find articles from these journals. Secondary sources may also come from reputable websites with .gov, .edu, or .org in the domain. (Wikipedia is not a reputable source, through the sources listed in Wikipedia articles may be acceptable.
If you are unsure about how to use APA format to cite your sources, please see the following lessons:
What is APA Format? Definition & Style
How to format APA Citations
If you use any Study.com lessons as sources, please also cite them in APA (including the lesson title and instructor’s name.)
Grading Rubric
Your paper will be graded based on the following rubric: